Riding Elephants in Laos

We arrived in Luang Prabang, Laos on Thursday, July 23rd around 11 am. We were absolutely dying for American food after eating only rice with veggies and fatty pork for 4 days. After finding a quaint guest house (for only $20 a night mind you), eating a steak and some french fries was second on the priority list. We did so, and then strolled the streets of Luang Prabang.

We had only heard of this small town from reading about it in Wunderlust magazine. It was ranked highly on best cities to visit in the world. Compared to other places in Southeast Asia that we've been to, Luang Prabang is small, quaint, and tasteful. It has a lot of french influence stemming from colonial times. There are cafes, the arcitecture is French colonial with asian overtones, and the shopping is FANTASTIC and really inexpensive. There have been outdoor markets everywhere we've gone, but the quality of the goods here is really impressive. I dont know how much money we've already spent here, but it could be bad if we stay much longer!

Yesterday, we went to an elephant farm and learned how to be a "mahout." A Mahout is basically an elephant trainer. I had reservations about doing this because I hate seeing elephants put to labor. But, this place's goal was actually to preserve elephants who had previously been abused in the logging industry. Apparently, Laos and Thailand had tried just setting them free to the lands after being in captivity, but they eventually end up dying from starvation. So, this is a rescue operation.

It was one of the most exhilerating things we've done in this trip. I absolutely LOVED it!! We learned how to reach up and grab the elephant's ear, step up on it's front leg, and hike ourselves up onto it's head. Then, we rode them for about an hour, telling them to "go, turn left, turn right, stop" (the most important command), all in Lao. I was terrified at first because the only elephants I had ever been around, were those in Africa who were ready to charge at us!! But, soon, I started to gain some amount of trust. After lunch, we rode them to the river nearby, sat on their heads, while they submerged themselves in the water while we scrubbed their tough skin with a brush. I cant explain it....it was totally so exciting. I would do it again in a heartbeat!!

After this, we took a tiny speadboat over to a waterfall and swam for a couple of hours. It was so pretty, and not so touristy, which is what we liked the most. Laos is the most underdeveloped out of all the places we've been. Luang Prabang, although not the country's capital, is the biggest "city" and there's really only 2 main streets to walk down.

So, needless to say, yesterday was definately my most favorite experience of the trip. I cant wait to post pictures...you should see the look on my face after first getting on the elephant!! Today, we're just relaxing and taking it easy. Tomorrow, we'll take kyacks to see some caves nearby that has budha carvings in them. Love to everyone!! - Kate